Visions And Strategies For A Sustainable Economy

The multidisciplinary edited book Visions and Strategies for a Sustainable Economy: Theoretical and Policy Alternatives provides a thorough examination – at the theoretical and, especially, policy levels – of a number of key topics related to a sustainable economy and a better society. With important contributions by distinguished academics, the book presents alternative views, provides an assessment of contemporary realities in an era of ecological emergency, and offers visions, strategies, and realistic policies towards a better economy and society while paying special attention to a “green new deal” for different areas.

Looking at material flows, industrial and societal metabolism and their implications for the economy, this book provides radical perspectives on how the global economy should use natural resources in intelligent ways that maximise well-being without destroying life-supporting ecosystems.

This book offers a unique insight into the corporate health of energy companies in an evolving landscape of deregulation. Cutting across both historical and present-day situations, it demonstrates important elements vital to the success of energy companies coming out of a safe regulated structure and dealing with a new competitive environment. Targeted at corporate executives, energy professionals, the financial and investment communities, strategic planners and regulators, readers will find this resource helpful to understand how energy companies can meet the challenges of a competitive environment, what it will take to evolve into healthy energy companies, the impacts of deregulation and assessment of successful and unsuccessful strategies for energy companies, the role of technology in business/product reinvention and a successful business model, and the differences and similarities of electricity to other commodities-the challenges to generation, power delivery, environmental science and end-use sectors of the business.

Longlisted for the 2021 Porchlight Business Book Awards, Big Ideas & New Perspectives “She offers something both broad and scarce: a compelling new story about how to create a desirable future.”—New York Times An award-winning author and leading international economist delivers a hard-hitting and much needed critique of modern capitalism in which she argues that, to solve the massive crises facing us, we must be innovative—we must use collaborative, mission-oriented thinking while also bringing a stakeholder view of public private partnerships which means not only taking risks together but also sharing the rewards. Capitalism is in crisis. The rich have gotten richer—the 1 percent, those with more than $1 million, own 44 percent of the world's wealth—while climate change is transforming—and in some cases wiping out—life on the planet. We are plagued by crises threatening our lives, and this situation is unsustainable. But how do we fix these problems decades in the making? Mission Economy looks at the grand challenges facing us in a radically new way. Global warming, pollution, dementia, obesity, gun violence, mobility—these environmental, health, and social dilemmas are huge, complex, and have no simple solutions. Mariana Mazzucato argues we need to think bigger and mobilize our resources in a way that is as bold as inspirational as the moon landing—this time to the most ‘wicked’ social problems of our time.. We can only begin to find answers if we fundamentally restructure capitalism to make it inclusive, sustainable, and driven by innovation that tackles concrete problems from the digital divide, to health pandemics, to our polluted cities. That means changing government tools and culture, creating new markers of corporate governance, and ensuring that corporations, society, and the government coalesce to share a common goal. We did it to go to the moon. We can do it again to fix our problems and improve the lives of every one of us. We simply can no longer afford not to.

This powerful book sets out arguments and an agenda of policy proposals for achieving a sustainable and prosperous, but non-growing economy, also known as a steady-state economy. The authors describe a plan for solving the major social and environmental problems which face us today on a finite planet with a rapidly growing population.

What is balanced growth? This book shows that the definitions and implications of the concept of balanced growth vary significantly among the different disciplines in economic science, but are not exclusive at all. Terms such as sustainability or balanced growth have become buzzwords. In practice, they are often a desirable vision rather than an achievable objective. Why? Doubts may arise about the extent to which such concepts are compatible with a modern market economy. Is balanced growth possible at all? Is it reasonable to accept balanced growth as a norm? Why should a balanced growth path be a desirable strategy to pursue for policymakers, managers, employees, and other societal stakeholders? Empirical evidence suggests that the actual worldwide economic growth is not balanced at all. Meanwhile, ever since the beginning of the financial and economic crisis in 2007 and its accompanying spillover effects, our globalizing world has uncompromisingly shown the flip side of its coin. Its crisis-prone character has intensified the discussion about our economic system’s sustainability. Questions related to acceptable sovereign debt levels, suitable trade deficits and surpluses, firms’ growth targets, resource management and efficiency have aroused high interest. What is the cause of the observed imbalances? In our opinion, this debate must involve rethinking the qualitative and quantitative dimension of our present understanding of the nature of economic growth. This book accompanies the 9th DocNet Management Symposium of the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland. It contains contributions of the symposium's panel speakers, renowned authors to the field and young researchers. The Ph.D. students’ and post-doctoral association DocNet organizes the DocNet Management Symposium on a yearly basis with the goal to foster exchange between academia and practitioners.

Since the 1992 World Scientists’ Warning to Humanity, the looming prospect of Earth’s changing climate has inspired a broad movement dedicated to a sustainable future. In this Handbook, the author explains the elements of a sustainable economy, the development of which must be undertaken if we are to retain our civilization. The first section offers a critical analysis of orthodox economical thinking, and the tools used by the conventional economy to solve the “environmental problem.” The author examines the theory and tools of Environmental Economics addressing the commodification of nature, and offers analysis of the theoretical and practical contradictions which arise from attempts to combine environmental protection and free trade. Part II discusses the principles and tools needed to build a sustainable economy, including the concept of biomimicry as a guiding principle of sustainability, a brief description of the adaptive cycle of ecosystems and explains the concept of transformability and the factors that determine it. Discussion includes a broad evaluation of the capacity for transformation of National Sustainable Development Strategies and an analysis of the essential requirements of ecology-based tax reform. Also included is a critical vision of the dominant paradigm of science and technology. The third section explores sustainable production and consumption, discussing energy, transport, the circular economy of materials and sustainable consumption. Included are a detailed analysis of factors that determine the limits of fossil fuels, a description of the peak oil structural effect and its sectoral impacts, an overview of a sustainable electric system and a review of biofuels, electricity and hydrogen. The author concludes that only hydrogen associated to fuel offers a sustainable alternative to oil. Discussion includes a view of the structural causes of the current high-level consumption model through the lens of motivation, provision and access systems and a detailed description of policies that must be adopted as part of a sustainable consumption strategy. The final chapter undertakes the task of analyzing the capability of our societies to transform themselves to reach sustainability. The author broadly evaluates each factor, as a prior step to carrying out an overall evaluation and demonstrates that in order to accomplish a comprehensive analysis, a multidisciplinary group is necessary.

Strategies for transitioning to a steady-state economy that maximizes long-term well-being for all people. We’re overusing the earth’s finite resources, and yet excessive consumption is failing to improve our lives. In Enough Is Enough, Rob Dietz and Dan O’Neill lay out a visionary but realistic alternative to the perpetual pursuit of economic growth—an economy where the goal is not more but enough. They explore specific strategies to conserve natural resources, stabilize population, reduce inequality, fix the financial system, create jobs, and more—all with the aim of maximizing long-term well-being instead of short-term profits. Filled with fresh ideas and surprising optimism, Enough Is Enough is the primer for achieving genuine prosperity and a hopeful future for all. “Humans seem to be intent on confirming the argument of biologist Ernst Mayr that higher intelligence may be a lethal mutation. But the grim prognosis is not inevitable. This lucid, informed, and highly constructive book shows that with the will to act, solutions can be found to build a steady-state economy geared to meeting human needs.”—Noam Chomsky “Rob Dietz and Dan O’Neill bring clarity and style to their impassioned and meticulous analysis, offering the way to a better quality of life and a sustainable future for all.”—Kate Pickett, Professor of Epidemiology, University of York; cofounder, The Equality Trust; and coauthor of The Spirit Level “Dietz and O’Neill create a remarkable vision—a world with enough prosperity and happiness for everyone, not just for a few. This book will restore your hope in the future and give you specific things you can do to help!”—Thom Hartmann, internationally syndicated talk show host and author of twenty-four books

Despite recent optimism and global initiatives, the implementation of corporate sustainability programs has been slow at best, with less than a third of global companies having developed a clear business case for their approach to sustainability. Presenting numerous award-winning cases and examples from companies such as Unilever, Patagonia, Tumi, DSM and Umicore alongside original ideas based upon 20 years of consulting experience, this book reveals how to design and implement a stronger sense of focus and move sustainability programs forward. This proven combination of purpose, direction and speed is dubbed “Vectoring”. Based upon practitioner cases and data analysis from the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, Vectoring offers a plain-spoken framework to identify the relative position of companies compared to their peers. The framework and its 4 archetypes deliver insights for practitioners to locate inhibitors and overcome them by providing practical suggestions for process improvements. This includes designing and executing new sustainability programs, embedding the SDGs within company strategy and assessing the impact of sustainability programs on competitiveness and valuation. Offering directions for CFOs to shift companies from integrated reporting to integrated thinking in order to accelerate their sustainability programs, Winning Sustainability Strategies shows how to achieve purpose with profit and how to do well by doing good.

Sustainable Success: Strategies for Thriving in a Changing World helps readers through the complex junction of purpose and profitability in today's fast-paced corporate environment. This book explores the fundamentals of sustainability and provides firms with doable plans for long-term success that also benefit the economy, society, and environment. The book examines a variety of strategies intended to promote resilience, innovation, and competitiveness in a world that is always changing, from embracing renewable energy solutions to promoting diversity and inclusion. Readers are given the tools they need to foster a culture of sustainability, bringing about positive change and producing enduring value for stakeholders through perceptive analysis and real-world case studies. Business executives, entrepreneurs, or anybody interested in sustainability will find "Sustainable Success" to be a great resource with practical advice for navigating the complexities of today's business environment while building a brighter, more sustainable future for all.